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On Wednesday, the Bay Collective group revealed the recruitment of Anja van Ginhoven, England's managerial lead under Sarina Wiegman, taking on the role of global women's football operations director. This freshly established multi-team ownership group, featuring Bay FC of San Francisco as its initial addition among its holdings, has prior experience in recruiting from the English FA.

The hiring this year of Kay Cossington, the influential former FA technical director, as top executive acted as a signal of intent from this organization. Cossington knows women’s football comprehensively and now has put together a leadership team that possesses extensive knowledge of women’s football history and packed with professional background.

Van Ginhoven marks the third central staffer of the manager's inner circle to depart in the current year, with the chief executive exiting prior to the European Championships and deputy manager, Arjan Veurink, moving on to take up the role of head manager of the Netherlands, however her move was made earlier.

Stepping away has been a jarring experience, but “My choice was made to exit the national setup well in advance”, she states. “My agreement lasting four years, just as Arjan and Sarina did. When they renewed, I previously indicated I didn’t know whether I would. I had grown accustomed to the whole idea that following the tournament my time with England would end.”

The Euros turned into an emotional event due to that. “I remember very clearly, vividly, discussing with the head coach when I disclosed about my decision and then we said: ‘There’s just one dream, what a triumph it would represent if we were to win the European Championship?’ Generally, dreams don't dreams come true often but, absolutely incredibly, this one did.”

Dressed in orange, Van Ginhoven experiences split allegiances after her time in England, during which she contributed to securing consecutive European championships and worked within Wiegman’s staff when the Netherlands won the 2017 Euros.

“The national team retains an emotional connection for me. So, it will be challenging, particularly now knowing that the players are due to arrive for national team duty shortly,” she says. “When England plays the Netherlands, where do my loyalties lie? I’m wearing orange at the moment, but tomorrow I'll be in white.”

In a speedboat, you can pivot and accelerate swiftly. In a lean group like this one, that is simple to achieve.

The club was not part of the equation when the management specialist determined that a new chapter was needed, but the pieces fell into place perfectly. Cossington initiated the recruitment and mutual beliefs proved essential.

“Virtually from the start we got together we had that click moment,” states she. “There was immediate understanding. Our conversations have been thorough about different things related to developing women's football and the methods we believe are correct.”

Cossington and Van Ginhoven are not alone to relocate from prominent roles within European football for a fresh start across the Atlantic. Atlético Madrid’s women’s technical director, Patricia González, has been unveiled as Bay Collective’s global sporting director.

“I was very attracted by the firm conviction in the potential of the women’s game,” González comments. “I've been acquainted with Kay Cossington for an extended period; when I used to work at Fifa, she was the technical director of England, and such choices are straightforward when you know you are going to be surrounded by people who really inspire you.”

The extensive expertise in their team makes them unique, notes Van Ginhoven, as Bay Collective among a number new multi-club initiatives that have started lately. “It's a standout feature of our approach. Various methods are valid, however we strongly feel in having that football knowledge on board,” she adds. “All three of us have progressed within the women's game, for most of our lives.”

As their website states, the ambition of this group is to champion and pioneer an advanced and lasting environment for women's football clubs, founded on effective practices for the diverse needs of women in sport. Succeeding in this, with everyone on the same page, with no need to make the case for specific initiatives, is incredibly freeing.

“I equate it to going from a tanker to a speedboat,” remarks Van Ginhoven. “You’re basically driving through waters that there are no roadmaps for – that’s a Dutch saying, I'm unsure if it translates well – and it's necessary to trust your own knowledge and expertise to choose wisely. You can change direction and move quickly with a speedboat. Within a compact team such as ours, that is simple to achieve.”

She continues: “In this role, we start with a blank slate to work from. For me, our mission focuses on impacting football on a much broader level and that clean start permits you to undertake any direction you choose, within the rules of the game. That is the advantage of our joint endeavor.”

The aspirations are significant, the management are saying the things the football community hope to hear and it will be interesting to observe the evolution of this organization, Bay FC and other teams that may join.

To get a sense of future plans, what are the key aspects in a high-performance setting? “{It all starts and ends with|Everything begins and concludes with|The foundation and culmination involve